Roscrea junction is 'absolutely lethal' for pedestrians
Roscrea’s Rosemary Square has been singled out as one of the most dangerous junctions in North Tipperary
Pedestrians crossing a busy junction in the centre of Roscrea town are 'taking their lives in their hands' according to a local representative.
Roscrea's Rosemary Square has been described as "the most dangerous junction for pedestrians in Tipperary" by a local Councillor, who this week pleaded for the installation of temporary traffic safety measures.
Rosemary Square in Roscrea town centre is built around the Fancy Fountain and is the point where five roads converge in a double staggered junction and causes much confusion for visiting motorists unfamiliar with the heritage town.
At the October monthly meeting of the Municipal Council for the area on Monday, local Councillor Shane Lee described Rosemary Square as "absolutely lethal" and said that blind spots for pedestrians attempting to negotiate the busy junction make it very dangerous.
Cllr. Lee asked if a temporary solution could be put in place to make it safer and pointed out that pedestrians are forced to cross the junction to reach essential local facilities such as St Cronan's Church, a public nursing home, the Abbey Hall and some of the heritage town's largest residential areas.
"Something needs to be done even on a temporary basis," Cllr. Lee said, adding he "understands it is a massive undertaking, but it is one of the worst junctions in Tipperary."
"Entering the junction from beside Douglas' shop towards the town centre is very dangerous and there is a total blind spot for people coming from the Carry Out shop beside the Convent Hill exit," he said.
"I'm calling for these urgent measures to help keep pedestrians safe," Cllr. Lee told the meeting,but was told by the district's engineers funding is currently unavailable for what they described as a "major project" required to remedy the situation.
"There is no safe crossing for pedestrians at all. There is no level crossing, there is no controlled crossing, there is nothing in that area," he said.
Senior Engineer for the District, Thomas Duffy, said the local authority's design team and engineers visited Roscrea on Friday last to examine if Rosemary Square may be feasible to benefit from the Town and Village Renewal Scheme funding - but they decided the junction "lacks eligibility."
"We acknowledge that a large project is needed there and we are searching for money to do it, but until there is access to funding nothing can be done," Mr Duffy said, adding that a temporary solution would be a non-runner.
"A temporary fix won't do - it needs a bigger project, but at the moment there is no money available," Mr Duffy said.
Councillor Kay Cahill Skehan told the meeting she visited Roscrea recently and observed traffic at the junction and asked if a one-way traffic system might make the area safer for pedestrians.
Mr Duffy said a one-way traffic system "was one of the first things we looked at and that one leg of the road would have to close for it, but we need a consultant on-board to look at all avenues and you can't just look at one element in isolation."
"It needs to be looked at as a whole and there are five or six legs coming into it and it needs a complete review of the entire design for that area, but we acknowledge it is a priority and it does need to be done," Mr Duffy said.